With the inauguration of Donald Trump last week, some in our society are feeling euphoric. Some are in abject despair. Others somewhere in the middle. Likely all believers would be helped by some biblical reminders regarding our citizenships.
Yes, I used the plural intentionally. We are citizens of the United States and we are also citizens of heaven. Below are a few things to help us keep all things in perspective as we move into the coming days.
We must keep in mind that our ultimate citizenship is in heaven. Philippians 3:20 is clear: Our citizenship is in heaven. Likewise, Ephesians 2:19 reads, You are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. In 1 Peter 2:11, the apostle calls us “sojourners and exiles.” That is, we are people whose home is not this earth. We are citizens of another land. Jesus Christ is our king. We should view ourselves as something like ambassadors to our earthly country.
We should conceive of ourselves first and foremost as believers. Who we are in Christ is our identity. Overly strong connection to our earthly country could lead us to think of ourselves first and foremost as Americans. Surely, we are Americans, but that is not our identity.
As citizens of heaven, we must remember that our primary mission is not of this world. We have a mission unique to our citizenship in heaven. We are tasked with knowing Christ and making Him known. Matthew 28:18-20 reads, And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
That mission should be the major focus of our lives. Knowing Christ and making Him known. We must be careful not to subordinate that mission to other things related to our devotion to this country.
If we get more excited about national issues than about kingdom issues, that could be a sign that something is awry. Are we more passionate about building the kingdom or building this nation? Certainly, we can be passionate about both. However, we cannot be most passionate about both. One has to be subordinated to the other.
It’s possible that wrong thinking on this issue could lead us to focus primarily on making our country great or preserving its greatness at the expense of our primary biblical mission, which is to know Christ and make Him known in the world. It doesn’t have to, but it can. We just need to keep an eye on it.
As citizens of heaven, we must keep in mind that we are more profoundly joined to believers in other cultures than we are to our own unbelieving fellow Americans.
In John 17, Jesus prayed that his followers would be one just as the Father and Son are one. Similarly, Ephesians 2 indicates that the cross of Christ unites not only Christ with His bride but believers with one another.
Ephesians 4:25b reads, “…for we are members of one another.” The word “member” means “body part.” Paul means we are joined together so profoundly that when the Holy Spirit wanted to find an apt metaphor He chose body parts connected to the same body. That’s only true of believers. We can’t say that about relationships with non-believers, no matter how close we may feel to them. Our connection to other believers should be far more fundamental to our understanding of who we are than our connection to other Americans.
It’s a very admirable thing to say, “I would die for my country.” That’s a great thing. But here’s a good question for the Christian who would gladly die for country: Would I die for my brothers and sisters in Christ overseas?
As citizens of heaven, we should be the best citizens of our earthly country, submitting to the governing authorities.
1 Peter 2:13-17 reads, Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.
Perhaps the most striking thing about Peter’s words is the government under which he wrote them. He didn’t writing under a democratic government. Rather, he likely wrote under Nero, who was Caesar of Rome at the time, an absolute bloodthirsty despot. Peter’s instruction is that part of living as an elect exile is being a good citizen, obeying the law of the land.
Paul echoes this in Romans 13:1: Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Paul, too, wrote under great persecution, exhorting us to be good citizens.
Christians should be the best citizens around. They should obey the law. They should pay their taxes. They should not speak disrespectfully about those in authority. How else we understand Peter’s instruction, “Honor the emperor”? Paul is more specific in Romans 13:7: Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.
As citizens of heaven, our ultimate prosperity and best life starts when Christ returns, not with any temporal golden age.
If we enjoy any kind of prosperity in this life, we should praise God for that (Jas 1:17). Certainly, we should work hard, save, and plan for the future (Prov 6:6-11). At the same time, Jesus and the apostles were clear that the life of discipleship would be one of toil and trouble (John 16:33; Acts 14:22; 2 Tim 3:12). Those who follow Christ do well to expect their best life to be the next one (Rom 8:18; 2 Cor 4:17-18). They set their hope fully on the grace that will be brought to them at the revelation of Jesus Christ (1 Pet 1:13).
Whether we are optimistic or discouraged by political winds in the world at present, our eyes, minds, and hearts should not be diverted from our primary mission and eternal home. Let’s think and live like citizens of heaven!
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